


Ten Days

by dontchasethesheep



Category: Dead Poets Society (1989)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Canon Compliant, Dead Poets Society Rare Pairing Month, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-15
Updated: 2014-06-15
Packaged: 2018-02-04 19:27:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 4,748
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1790497
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dontchasethesheep/pseuds/dontchasethesheep
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The shorter pieces written for Dead Poets Society Rare Pairing Month collected in one place.  All under 5k and previously published only on tumblr.  Rated for language in one or two of the chapters...</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Day 3 || Chris/Ginny

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> content warning: several mentions of spiders and badly written attempts at fluff..?

> Sent [18:32]  
>  WHEN ARE YOU COMING HOME
> 
> Received [18:35]  
>  In about an hour?  Are you ok?
> 
> Sent [18:35]  
>  Yeah.  I’m being stupid again
> 
> Received [18:39]  
>  Please don’t tell me it’s another spider.  
> 
> Sent [18:42]  
>  Shut up.  Just come home and get rid of it please!!!
> 
> Received [18:42]  
>  I actually work you know.  Stick it out.  

Ginny slid her phone back into her pocket and leaned against the wall.  This was the most embarrassing thing she had done.  Honestly, who was _this_ terrified of spiders at her age?  Nobody, that’s who.    
  
“Um, hello, Ginny.  Are you locked out?”    
  
Ginny looked down the hall to see Chris, another tenant, climbing the stairs.  Chris was the one who may or may not be flirting with her on a regular basis.  She always seemed interested, except for the fact that she never asked Ginny out on a date, or for her number, or tried to give her’s to her, so Ginny was at a loss.  It didn’t matter though, because whether she was a future significant other or a potential friend, it didn’t give a great impression to be scared out of her apartment by a tiny spider.    
  
“Oh, hey Chris.” She decided to lie - it seemed easier than telling her the truth.  “Yeah, I’m locked out.  Didn’t want to bother Mr. Goldberg, so I’m just waiting for my roommate to come home.”    
  
Chris grimaced apologetically.  “Well, when will she be back?”    
  
Ginny shrugged.  “I’m not really sure.  Soon, I hope.”  

There was a short pause, and Ginny tapped her fingers against the carpeted floor to fill the silence.   
  
“So…” Chris shifted her bag on her shoulder, looking significantly more nervous than Ginny had ever seen her.  “You’re going to be out here for a while?” 

Ginny nodded, shrugging slightly.  “Probably.” 

Chris nodded as well, almost to herself.  “Well then, um… do you… want to go out for coffee?  If you’re going to be locked out for a long time?”    
  
Ginny brushed her jeans, looking up at Chris in shock.  “Are you proposing a date?”  
  
“Yes?”

"A romantic date?" Ginny checked. 

"Um… yes, a romantic date.  If that’s okay with you."  Chris’s hand flew up as if it were going to brush her hair behind her ear, but at last second she brought the hand down to her side again.  It was one of her nervous ticks.  The fact that Ginny  _knew_ that was a nervous tic made her pleased, and she bit her tongue to stop herself from saying anything stupid.   


“Yes, a romantic coffee sounds lovely.”  

>   
>  Sent [18:45]  
>  Don’t worry about coming home early.  I’m actually quite fond of that spider now. 


	2. Day 7 || Knox/Neil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Takes place in an alternate universe in which Neil was sent off to military school (in other words, didn’t die)… This was a pairing I really wanted to try, but it turned out to be way more difficult than I anticipated. Despite being pretty main characters, these two really don’t interact that much during the movie, and I didn’t realize that until I sat down to actually write/photoshop something for their pairing.

Knox woke up wearily, swathed in a comforter heavier than the one he was used to and blinking at the unusual presence of sunlight in the room (he usually slept with the curtains drawn and door closed).  He took a deep breath and looked around the room, remembering the previous night in frames, like a VHS tape being fast-forwarded: seeing a high school friend for the first time in six years, buying him a drink.  Then kissing him, fumbling with buttons and ties… oh, right.  He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, wondering whether he was actually dreaming.  He opened his eyes again to see that nothing had changed except for the doorway, in which the man himself had appeared.   
  
"Morning.”  Neil lingered by the door, holding a mug of coffee close to his chest, looking apprehensive.  “Um… sleep well?”    
  
Knox stared at Neil, then looked at the mug of coffee.  “Yeah.  I… I slept well.”    
  
Neil entered the room, carefully extending the mug towards Knox.  “Here.”    
  
The handle was facing towards Knox, and it was with a sort of significance that he reached out and took the coffee, cradling it in both hands.    
  
“So you’re good?” Neil asked, sitting down next to Knox gingerly.  There was a carefully premeditated lilt to his words, and Knox knew that Neil what he was doing, because Neil had been doing it since they were seven: making sure everyone else was okay.  Knox knew that if he responded negatively, Neil would let Knox brush the entire encounter off as just a drunken incident and never bring it up again.  But Knox knew he didn’t want that, and he guessed Neil didn’t want that either.     
  
Knox looked down at the coffee again and nodded.  “Yeah.  I’m definitely good,” he said, a sudden feeling of light joy making him smile uncontrollably.  He glanced at Neil and saw he was smiling, too.    
  
“Good,” said Neil, then he leaned forward to kiss Knox quickly.  “I’m glad.”    
  
“Me, too.  Very glad.” 


	3. Day 15 || Gerard/Neil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Title: Warmth
> 
> I secretly really like this pairing, and I'm pretty sure I'm the only one haha

Neil and Gerard had grown up together, living two doors down from each other.  When they were young, they would play in Gerard’s sandbox, sharing their toy trucks.  Gerard would make hills and tunnels in the sand that Neil would enthusiastically roll the trucks over, making realistic truck noises.

When they got older, they started walking to school together, comparing trading cards or rocks or whatever fad gripped the school at the time.  By that time, Gerard was already starting to dislike school - at least, more than Neil - so the walk to and from became the best part of the day.  The way Neil would smile and sling his arm around his shoulder (this was back when they were roughly the same height) never failed to make Gerard feel kind of warm inside.   
     
When they were even older, they were both enrolled at Welton, and even though Gerard never said so, he sorely missed walking home after school with Neil.  The quiet street had been replaced for a busy hallway and their arms full of books instead of trading cards.  They didn’t really have an abundance of free time at Welton, and eventually, Gerard couldn’t remember the last time he had talked to Neil alone.  Of course they were still close friends, but Gerard found himself spending more time with Steven and Neil… well, Neil spent time with everyone.  But even though they didn’t talk alone anymore, Neil would sometimes glance over his shoulder grin at Gerard, or gently push his shoulder with a teasing “you’re in my way, you oaf”, and Gerard felt that familiar warmth wash over him, just like back in elementary school.   
  
The last time Gerard walked with Neil was March of their sophomore year.  Neil and Charlie had cajoled the Knox, Steven, Gerard, and Stick to sneak into town for the afternoon.  They had sneaked out of school grounds with giddy excitement, and almost sprinted the whole way into town, whooping and hollering with exhilaration.  Knox and Stick had wrapped their ties around their head and Charlie had stuffed his into his back pocket (he also took his sweater off and claimed he wasn’t cold, but Gerard could see from the goosebumps on his arms that that was at least a _little_ bit of a lie).  They had stopped by the corner store and the park, where Knox had accidentally terrorized a couple of children, before reluctantly heading back to Welton, lazily meandering down the streets.  Gerard had been kicking a stone along the sidewalk while the others walked ahead when Neil feel back, waiting for Gerard to catch up with him before they fell into step.  Neil didn’t say anything at first, just smiled up at Gerard.  Gerard grinned back, and distracted, he kicked the stone awkwardly and it tumbled into the grass.   
  
“Why do we keep you on the soccer team?” Neil teased, retrieving the stone with his foot and dribbling it that best he could back to the pavement, which wasn’t all that good, because it rolled back the other way, off the sidewalk and onto the street.   
  
“Why do we keep _you_ on the soccer team?” Gerard threw back.  Neil laughed, then gestured for him to kick the rock back over.  They kicked the stone down the sidewalk together for a while, a silence falling over them.  It was the first time they had walked along together since they were seven, Gerard realized.  He looked at Neil, and found that the spring chill had evaporated, leaving him with warmth, happiness overcoming him.  He really did miss spending time with Neil, no matter how many times he told himself he didn’t.  He could never quite figure out what it was about Neil that made him feel so completely safe and heartened, but it was there, and always had been.  
  
Neil looked up to see Gerard’s thoughtful expression.  “Anything wrong?” he asked.   
  
Gerard shrugged.  “Nope.  Everything is great.”   
  
Because nothing was ever wrong when it was just him and Neil.   
  
-x-  
  
Gerard was lying on his bed, winter of ’59, staring up at the ceiling and feeling absolutely empty on the inside.   He wrapped his arms across his chest and remembered the sandbox and the walks and the smiles.  His stomach flipped and his wrapped his arms tighter, wishing that somehow, he could get the warmth back.


	4. Day 16 || Steven/Todd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The night Knox visits the Danburry's, Steven stops by Todd's room. 
> 
> This one was probably one of my favourite ones to write :)

Todd tosses his notebook and “carpe diem” aside in favour for his chemistry book.  The hall is quiet; it seems as though everyone has congregated in the rec room.  For a brief moment, Todd regrets turning down Neil’s study group offer, but the feeling flares down quickly.  He doesn’t want to intrude; the six of them seem like they are very comfortable and close with each other, and Todd would be ruining that serenity.  Todd has resigned himself to the eerie quiet of the dorm room and is just about to really focus on his chemistry work when there’s a knock on the door.  

“Todd?”  

It’s Steven Meeks, holding something lumpy under his shirt.  

“Oh.  Uh, hi,” Todd stammers.    
  
“What are you doing here?  Didn’t Neil invite you to study with us?” Steven asks, and maybe Todd is imagining it, but he sounds a little disappointed and confused.    
  
Todd shrugs his left shoulder.  “Yes, he did.”    
  
“Why are you here, then?”  
  
“Um…” Todd falters, but Steven seems to read his mind.    
  
“We want you around, you know,” he says, almost tenderly.      
  
Todd shrugs again, not daring to believe what he said.    
  
“You should come down to the rec room,” Steven carries on.  “Even if you don’t sit with us.”    
  
Todd remains silent, and Steven doesn’t speak.  Todd looks down at his hands, feeling Steven’s gaze fixed on him.  He counts an entire seventeen seconds drag by before he looks up at Steven, who still stands in the doorway with that ridiculously lumpy object under his shirt.  Steven has a very odd expression on his face, and undecipherable emotion seeping into his eyes.  It looks a little like fear… and longing.  As if he stands in front of a beautiful pool of water on a hot day, but knows that the water is poisonous, so is left to stand and stare.   
  
“I-“ Todd starts to speak, but Steven makes a quick movement.  For a split second, Todd thinks he is going to pull him out of his chair, or maybe slap him, but instead, Steven moves across the room and kisses him.  It is fleeting, but there: the lightest lingering of lips on his, and slightest squeeze of a hand before Steven snaps back.  He’s back at the doorway so quickly that Todd wonders whether he had imagined the whole thing. 

The look of fear and longing in Steven’s eyes is now one of fear, and a hint of self-disgust. 

“Um, you should still join us in the rec room.  If you want.”  Steven’s hands are trembling ever so slightly, and he speaks quickly, sounding flustered.  Even though Todd has only know him for thirty-six hours, he thinks that flustered is a very strange look on him.   
  
Todd nods mutely, and Steven abruptly leaves the room, leaving Todd feeling a little empty and a little full.  He stares at his chemistry book for a long time, Steven’s kiss still sending ripples through his mind, disrupting his thoughts.  He finds himself unnecessarily fixated on the fact that Steven has _freckles_.  If he lets himself think about anything else - the genuine concern in Steven’s voice at the doorway, how Steven’s hand ran through his hair so carefully, how Steven’s lips felt pressed to his - Todd is fairly sure he will implode.   
  
Finally, Todd picks up his books and sneaks into the rec room, selecting a table as far away from Steven as possible.  Nobody notices his entrance except for Steven.  They hold their gaze for a fragment of a second before Steven looks back down to the radio that sits in front of him.   
  
They never speak of the kiss again. 


	5. Day 18 ||  Jeffrey/Neil

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> “Oh, so you’re /that/ Anderson.” 
> 
> *** Select Segments of a Conversation Between Jeffrey Anderson and Neil Perry on October 14 1958 ***

**19:21**  
"Jeff.  What are you doing here?"  
"Is Jake here?"  
“No.  Do you want to wait for him?  He’ll be back soon”    
“Sure.”    
“Oh.  Okay.” 

 **19:21**  
"Good game today."  
"Thanks, Neil.  You, too.  Playing next year?"  
"Probably.  My dad wants me to."  
"Same here."

 **19:22**  
“I like soccer alright.  I don’t dislike it.”    
“But..?”    
“Well, it’s not my favourite.  I don’t mind it.  My father likes it.” 

 **19:26**  
“Just my parents and my brother”    
“An older brother?”    
“No, he’s your age, he goes to Ballincrest.”  
“Oh.”    
“We never talk.  Our parents are very impatient with him.”    
“That’s not your fault.”    
“I just kind of think I should do something about it.  But I never do.  It feels like my fault.”

 **19:28**  
“My mother… she doesn’t really count.  She thinks what my father thinks.”    
“And what does your father think?”    
“That I should be perfect.” 

 **19:29**  
“We’re not all that different.”  
“You think?”    
“… I don’t know.  In some ways.”    
“What kind of ways?”    
“Our parents?  School, I guess.  The pressure.” 

 **19:34**  
“I’m just tired of it all.”    
“I know.” 

 **19:34**  
“I can’t let people down.”    
“I know.” 

 **19:34**  
“I know.  I know, Jeff.” 

 **19:35**  
“You just kissed me.”    
“… yeah.”    
“…huh.” 

 **19:35**  
“This is… this is wrong…”    
“I don’t care…  I don’t care anymore.” 

 **19:37**  
“Oh Lord, what are we doing?”    
“What?”    
“I… we can never do this… that again.”    
“…I’m sorry.”    
“Please, promise you’ll never tell anyone about this.”    
“I…”    
“Please, Neil.”    
“Okay.” 

 **19:38**  
“Tell Jake I was by, okay?”    
“Uh… yeah, sure.” 

 **19:40**  
“Goodbye.” 


	6. Day 19 || Gerard/Todd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AU setting, Todd and his friends go to the beach.
> 
> Content warning for drowning (it's pretty tame though, and there's not even close to any character death)

Todd couldn’t swim very well.  

At all, actually.  

He was the last person you would want in deep water.  

Which is obviously why he would be the one who ends up alone in the water, struggling to keep his head above the water.  

_This is how I’m going to die_ , Todd thought hysterically.  _In a tiny lake while my friends eat hamburgers on the beach._  
  
Todd was splashing frantically by now, and choking on what felt like buckets of water.  _Going to die, going to die, fuck_ why _did I let Neil talk me into coming today?_  
  
And just as Todd was sure he was going to drown, a pair of arms were around his waist and his head was lifted above the water.  Todd coughed harshly, expelled the water from his lungs and gasping in oxygen.  He clung on to the unknown being (who he now considered his hero) as the two of them got closer to the beach.  As soon as the water got shallow enough, Todd scrambled out of the stranger’s arms and waded to the shore and collapsed on sand, cursing best as his water-sore throat would allow.    
  
“Are you alright?”  a voice asked.  Todd assumed it was his saviour.    
  
Todd nodded.  “Well, I’m not dead, so I consider that good,” he said.  He kept his eyes squeezed shut, relishing the feeling of warm, dry air on his body.   
  
He caught his breath and rolled over to face his saviour but his words got stuck in his throat when he opened his eyes and made eye contact with the stranger.  He was tall, had slightly damp brown hair that stuck up slightly and grey eyes that were distressingly distracting .  _I’ve been saved by Prince Eric.  Does that mean I’m Ariel?_ Todd thought.  _But Ariel could swim._ Todd frowned and shook his head free of stupid Disney-themed thoughts.   
  
He tried to sit up and realized his saviour was holding his hand worriedly.  “I try to be on first-name basis with people who hold my hand,” he joked weakly.    
  
His saviour blushed, and loosened his grip a little.  “Oh right.  I’m Gerard.”  
  
“’m Todd,” Todd replied, voice still raspy.  “Th-thanks for… thanks for saving me.”    
  
“No problem,” Gerard said.  He stood up and offered his hand.  He must have been a little stronger than he thought, or Todd was lighter than he had expected, because they both stumbled a little as he pulled Todd to his feet.  “You are absolutely sure you are okay?”    
  
Todd shifted awkwardly.  “Completely.  Thanks for… uh, s-saving my life.” 

"I couldn’t let you drown without it eating at my conscience for the rest of my life," he said. 

"Your conscience is clear now?" 

"As glass." 

They both grinned, and Todd opened his mouth to say something when he noticed Gerard frowning at something behind him.  He looked over his shoulder to see five people standing at the end of the beach, waving at Gerard. 

"That’s my family," Gerard sighed.  "I should go.”    
  
“Will I see you around?” asked Todd, hoping he didn’t sound too expectant or clingy.    
  
Gerard paused and shrugged.  “If you want me around.”  

Todd took a kind of delight in the fact that even though Gerard wasn’t as shy as him, he did look almost equally insecure in the art of flirting (at least, that’s what Todd hoped they were doing). 

“I do,” Todd said.  And he really did.   
  
To his relief, Gerard nodded, a touch too enthusiastically.  “I’ll see you around, then.”    
  
He turned to jog down the beach, throwing a flappy wave over his shoulder.  Todd waved back, then slowly made his way back to his friends, feeling extremely lightheaded, and not just from his near-death experience.


	7. Day 23 || Charlie/Todd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Modern high school AU because we need more of those.

“Todd,” Neil hissed.  

Todd looked up as Neil slid onto the bench next to him, raising his eyebrows slightly.  

“Charlie Dalton is right there,” Neil said excitedly.  “You should go talk to him!”  

Todd sighed, regretting _ever_ telling Neil that he was particularly fond of a certain Charlie Dalton.  He shifted uncomfortably and returned his attention back to the textbook open on his lap.  “Neil, I… I can’t do that.”    
  
“Why not?” Neil asked, with genuine bewilderment.  Even after only knowing him for two days, Todd could already tell that Neil was the type to be super earnest about everything.    
  
“I… he doesn’t know me, I obviously can’t just walk up and start a conversation,” Todd explained.   
  
Neil scrunched his nose and shook his head.  “Yes, you can.  That’s how I met you.”    
  
Todd sighed.  “But you’re, well, the new kid.”  He winced apologetically, but Neil waved him on airily.  “But I’ve _technically_ known Charlie since we were in kindergarten.  It’s… weird.”    
  
“What’s weird?”  
  
Todd’s gaze slipped away from Neil and over his shoulder to watch Charlie laugh at something his friends said.  “Everything?” he said.  “Like, the fact that I have had a crush on him for five years?  The fact that I have a crush on him even though we’ve never spoken?  The fact that he probably doesn’t even know my name?”    
  
Neil frowned like this was the worst news he had heard since he learned there was only one season of _Firefly_.  Then he brightened and popped off the bench.  “I’ll go talk to him for you.”    
  
Todd froze.  “N-no, don’t do - Neil!”    
  
But Neil was already gone, and Todd couldn’t stop him without following him to where Charlie sat, and he _definitely_ wasn’t going to do that.  So instead, he slumped in the bench and hurriedly pretended to engross himself in the textbook, peeking up at Neil and Charlie out of the corner of his eye.    
  
Unfortunately, Neil was smiling charmingly and Charlie was smirking, and it was hard to take anything away from that because Todd was pretty sure they looked like that 83% of the time.  Neil said something that made Charlie brighten, and his friends Steven Meeks and Knox Overstreet burst out into peels of laughter, nudging Charlie and said something that made Charlie go red in the face.  Charlie shoved Knox backwards and snapped at Steven, who then adorned a pseudo serious expression.  Neil said something and Charlie’s attention snapped back up to him and said something quickly back.  To Todd’s astonishment, Charlie took a piece of paper out and wrote something on it.  Neil thanked Charlie and made his way back to Todd while Knox and Steven almost leapt onto Charlie in excitement.    
  
When Neil returned, he said nothing, only held the paper out to Todd with a great smile.    
  
Todd took the paper with trembling hands:    
  
 _555-555 text me please xx_


	8. Day 25 || Chris/Steven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I said rare pairings, I meant it....

“The baby-sitter is going to be here soon, so I’m just going to go fetch William, if that is alright.  Just run through that scale one more time and I’ll see you next week”  

“Okay, thanks Miss Nukaryia.”  

Steven flexed his hands before running through his scales again.  Steven had always found playing scales relaxing and soothing.  Probably the repetition, the predictability, the mathematical logic of them.  He closed his eyes slowly, allowing his hands to dance across the keys.  

He was in the middle of the Ab melodic minor scale when the door opened and his fingers stumbled over the notes.  He looked over his shoulder to see a girl standing in the door, wearing a bright red coat and a hesitant smile.   

“Um, hello.  Is Rose… ehm, Miss Nukaryia in?”    
  
Steven stood and nodded.  “She’s downstairs, she’ll be up in a minute with William.”    
  
“Great.”  The girl shrugged her jacket off and hung it on the coat rack, stepping out of her boots.  “You play the piano very nicely,” she said after a moment.    
  
Steven waved his hand.  “They were just scales,” he said sheepishly.  “Nothing special.”    
  
“Well, I never learned how to play piano, so it impresses me,” the girl shrugged.    
  
“Oh, well, thanks.  I’m Steven Meeks, by the way,” Steven said, manoeuvring around the piano to shake the girl’s hand.    
  
“I know,” the girl said cheerfully.  “I’m Chris.  Noel.”    
  
“You know me?” Steven asked, stifling his amazement.    
  
Chris smiles.  “Of course.  You won the national science fair last year, and you play soccer.”    
  
“I did.  I-I do!” Steven stumbled over his words, and sounding a little too pleased for his own liking.    
  
“I see you have acquainted yourself with Chris,” Miss Nukaryia said, returning with William on her hip.  “I’m sorry I kept you waiting.”    
  
“It’s no problem,” Steven said politely.    
  
Chris took William from Miss Nukaryia and turned back to Steven.  “It was nice meeting you,” she said.    
  
“It was nice meeting _you_ ,” Steven replied, immensely grateful his voice decided not to crack.    
  
“Steven is a very nice boy.” Miss Nukaryia stage-whispers, a cheeky grin on her face.   
  
Steven groaned and shook his head.  “Uh… I should go.”    
  
“If your sister ever needs a babysitter you can always ask Chris…” Miss Nukaryia titters as Steven stuffs his arms through his jacket sleeves.  “She’s very lovely.”    
  
“Thank you, m’am.  I’ll keep that in mind.” Steven waves and then makes a hasty exit, nearly tripping over the doormat.    
  
 _Miss Nukaryia has to be the only piano teacher in the world who tries to set one of her students up with the her babysitter,_ Steven thought, blushing deeply as the door closed behind him just as he hears Chris’s clear laughter sound.


	9. Day 27 || Cameron/Charlie

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Even though this isn't my favourite pairing, it is one of my favourite pieces of writing for this month.

Charlie wasted no time as he approached the mess hall, where Chris was setting crayons out for the next activity.    
  
“I accidentally kissed him.”

“What?  Who?  How does one _accidentally_ kiss another person? Who?  What?”  Chris asked, completely bemused.   
  
Charlie sighed, sitting down on a nearby chair with a thud.  “I intended on telling him why it doesn’t make sense to sort the beads out by colour and size because we’re working with _six_ year olds and they mess up anything even remotely organized within seconds anyway, right?”  He looked up, almost petulantly. “But instead of saying that… I sort of ended up putting my mouth on his.”   
  
“But _who_ did you - wait.  ‘Sort beads by colour’… you kissed _Cameron_?” Suddenly completely interested, Chris abandoned her task and perched on the edge of the table, eyes wide.  “Richard the-one-who-made-fun-of-your-beret Cameron?  Richard the-dork-that-carries-a-tin-of-bandages-in-his-pocket Cameron?  The Richard Cameron you’ve been complaining about ever since we were first came to this summer camp back in third grade?”  Chris laughed out loud.  “You have _got_ to be kidding!”   
  
“Nope.”   
  
“Oh my g _od_ ,” Chris said, punching Charlie’s arm, not even attempting to conceal her glee.  “I thought you hated him!” 

"Uh, yeah.  Me too."  And Charlie sounded genuinely confused. 

Chris and Charlie sat in silence for a few moments while Charlie pondered exactly when, how, and why he had decided he wanted to kiss Cameron. 

“And what about Cameron?  How did he react?” Chris interrupted Charlie’s thoughts.   
  
“Um… I would say he was okay with it,” Charlie said.   
  
“Yeah?”   
  
“Yeah.  He stuck his tongue down my throat.”   
  
“What?” Chris gasped, punching Charlie once again.   
  
Charlie nodded.  “He’s a good kisser,” he admitted flatly.   
  
Chris made a face (Cameron was not a person she associated with the phrase ‘good kisser’).  “Well, then what happened?” she demanded.   
  
“We stopped kissing, Cameron turned bright red, and I came down here to tell you.”  Charlie was fiddling with one of the crayons, avoiding eye contact.   
  
Chris shook her head in disbelief.  “And what are you going to do next?”   
  
“I think…” Charlie paused for a moment before answering.  ” I think I want to kiss him again.”


	10. Day 29 || Knox/Todd

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This fic is written as if the events of the movie happened in 1989 instead of 1959.

It was a cold day, but it was a bearable kind of cold, one that could be managed with an extra scarf and mittens.  So that’s what Todd was wearing when he heard someone speak fondly behind him.  

“Well, if it isn’t Todd Anderson.”

Todd spun around and he was met by Knox Overstreet.  He stood wearing a hat and coat, and a smile that hadn’t changed since high school, not really.  He had wrinkles by his eyes and his eyes weren’t quite as bright a brown, but it was still the same.    
  
Knox stepped forward and pulled Todd into a hug, which surprised him, because Knox was never used to be the touchy kind of person.  At least, he wasn’t the happy kind of touchy.  He was the sad kind of touchy.  Todd sure hoped he wasn’t making Knox sad.  But the smile on Knox’s face said otherwise, so Todd allowed himself to be embraced.  Knox stood back, holding onto Todd’s shoulders.    
  
“You’re doing alright?”    
  
“Sure.  You?”    
  
Knox just grinned back.  “Never better.”    
  
They stood and just looked at each other for a while.  Todd was thinking of the last time they had seen each other - the gentle kiss, the tears - and wondered whether Knox was thinking about it too.  Everything about Knox reminded Todd of that day.  The gentle curve of his upper lip that had fit so well with Todd’s, the warmth of his body that had wrapped around Todd, and the gentle shine of his eyes as they stared at Todd with an unmistakable intensity.    
  
Todd coughed awkwardly, suddenly distinctly aware of Knox’s hands still resting on Todd’s shoulders, and his own hands limply clutching the coat fabric at Knox’s hips.  It was similar to the awkward slow dances they endured throughout high school, Todd thought with a weak chuckle.  Todd’s laugh apparently brought Knox out of his thoughts and his hands abruptly slipped down to his sides.  Todd hastily let go of Knox’s jacket and opted for twitching his fingers inside his mitts.    
  
“So… want to get some coffee?”  
  
Todd’s fingers stilled and he looked carefully at Knox.  
  
“C-coffee?” Todd repeated.    
  
Knox nodded.  “Coffee.”  His voice was solemn.    
  
Todd hesitated.  He really shouldn’t, but Knox was looking at him so hopefully, and Todd could feel some of the tension in his shoulders had dissipated already.    
  
“Well…” Todd’s hand moved slowly to capture Knox’s, and Knox gripped his mittened hand gently.  “Okay.”    
  
“Okay?” Knox looked hesitantly thrilled.    
  
Todd took a deep breath and smiled.  “Let’s get coffee.”    
  
Knox beamed.  “I’ve missed you, Todd.”    
  
“I’ve missed you, too.”    
  
It was a cold day, but it was a bearable cold, one that could be managed with an extra scarf, mittens, and Knox Overstreet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If you want to see the things I did for the rest of Rare Pairing Month, you can check out dontchasethesheep.tumblr.com/tagged/post:-rare-pairing-month :) Thanks for reading!


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